Goodbye
by Black Shard
Summary: Not really a story. Things have gone to hell for me & I decided I have to do what I must.


This isn't really an update but I have made my decision on what to do. It really pains me to do this but I decided it's best for me to leave this site & take a hiatus from just everything in general. I've been here for years and things in this site & the fandom have changed while I've been stuck clinging to the past. It's time for me to move on.

Unfortunately, that means leaving this site.

Life is full of disappointments and sadly, this is one of them.

It still wouldn't be fair to call it quits without revealing what was going to happen.

Here's what I had in store for Discovering Destiny.

First up, the plot points.

After Meowthra destroys the mechs, the huge fight between Lloyd and Iris happens. It's not just a bunch of screaming, it's a full-on brawl. They absolutely maul each other & in the end, they're bruised, battered, & bloodied. Iris reveals her own parental issues, specifically her mother & they both clash over it which also causes the big fight. Iris' mother AKA Karloff's sister, is an extremely demanding parent pushing her dreams onto Iris and pretty much treating her as her property more than her child while Iris' father is nothing more than his wife's yes-man. Karloff knew of his sister's treatment of her daughter and often calls her out but she refuses to change. She is something of a black sheep in the family. After the family returned to Almaz, they managed to make more money and improve their way of life and while everyone else now knew to be grateful & never take anything for granted, Iris' mom let the new wealth & prosperity get to her head. The real reason why Karloff offered for Iris to live with him was to get her away from her mother.

After the fight, the ninja follow Wu to the Temple of the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon while Iris is so pissed at Lloyd she stays behind to help the people in the city. She eventually reveals herself to Karloff but keeps the others' identities a secret. At some point, she breaks down from all the pressure of being a ninja, her conflict with Lloyd, & knowing she'll have to go back to Almaz & her mother eventually which she doesn't want. Karloff is shocked but eventually accepts and encourages Iris and even convinces her to go back & find the rest of the ninja.

Meanwhile, the ninja's journey in the forest is mostly the same. To make sure I'm not breaking the rules, here's a drabble of something I originally planned for this story that takes place at the time which is also a way for me to vent on how boy/girl interactions are often poorly handled in media.

"What's _his_ problem?" Aria was unnerved by Lloyd's surly attitude.

"There is a seventy-two percent probability it is related to the fight he and Iris had earlier." Zane calculated.

"Let me guess. Girl problems?" Garmadon asked dryly.

"Mm-hmm." Kai merely nodded.

"No it's not," Lloyd turned to glare at his teammate, "We had a disagreement and Iris just happens to be a girl."

"They always fall for the blue-eyed ones." Garmadon snickered.

"Her eyes are violet." Lloyd corrected him.

Garmadon's only response was a sly smirk and even some of the ninja chuckled.

"...W-what's that face for…?"

"You just proved my point."

It took many moments for Lloyd to realize he walked right into his own father's trap.

"WHY CAN'T A BOY AND GIRL DO SOMETHING TOGETHER WITHOUT IT BEING SEEN AS ROMANTIC!?"

Moving on.

After the ninja fend off all the rejected General #1, Iris rejoins the team, make amends with Lloyd, & pretty much prove Garmadon wrong. Throughout the story, Lloyd ends up looking more like Garmadon. He gets blotches of pitch black skin all over his bodies and the center of his irises turn red and even after all the conflicts get resolved, his appearance remains the same but he accepts it.

In the temple, the ninja discover exactly why they were chosen by Wu but we'll get into that later.

When the ninja go to confront Meowthra, they discover that the remaining Shark Army members have sworn allegiance to her due to their frustration at how Garmadon treated them. The ninja use their elemental powers to thwart them but are unable to stop Meowthra from swallowing Garmadon. The ninja only manage to get close to Meowthra when Luna sings to calm her down which was inspired by Moana, beautiful movie BTW. After that, you know the rest.

And now, the relationships that were going to be and not to be in this story.

Jay confesses to Nya when the temple is collapsing and she admits her own feelings for him.

Of all the original ninja/OC couples, only Kai/Aria would've happened. They were considered the most popular couple way back in the early days & I decided to treat the older fans to some material from my first story.

As you can see from what I had so far, Luna's attraction to Cole is exactly that. It's nothing more than teenage infatuation. She does tell him eventually and even then, it will still leaves her heartbroken.

Zane and Heather's relationship was never going to be romantic. They certainly love & confess to each other but not in the romantic way since love isn't the same as romance which is what they learn through their relationship. They help each other truly understand what it is to love and it helps Zane realizes he also has romantic feelings not for Heather but for Cole & the two different love he feels for Heather & Cole are equally important to him.

Yeah, glaciershipping was going to be a thing here because love & romance isn't exclusive to boy/girl relationships & I planned for this story to have a little something for everyone. I may be projecting but I even had at least Iris leaning towards the asexual spectrum but enough about that.

And finally, the backstory of the Secret Ninja Force's elements. They find out everything from Koko's old diary at the Temple of the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon but not after a lot of reluctance.

Ray and Maya, Edna, Karloff, and various distant relatives were the previous wielders of the team's elements and were part of the 'Elemental Brigade' and was directly led by Koko. And yes, Ed & Edna are Jay's true parents in this universe & Edna was the previous master of lightning though Ed often helped out with his inventions. Cole's mother, Gaia, was also a member. During their adventures, we see Ray & Maya's relationship develop. The elemental masters of the show were also in the team & initially, Karloff was much more idealistic and immediately called the whole team as his friends, even if he can be arrogant & short-tempered but that changes when much of the group are killed in the various battles & he questions his ideals and what it's all for & all that classic angst.

Meanwhile, Gaia was second-in-command & well-loved by the whole team and during the time, she dated Lou & then married him. The others didn't approve because they had no idea what she saw in such a snobbish guy but didn't say anything. Gaia and Lou genuinely loved each other & Gaia was planning to leave shortly after Cole was born but died on what was supposed to be her last mission. Lou is shaken by her death and blamed the life of an elemental master for her fate & never quite got over it. He wanted to prevent Cole from going through the same fate as his mother by making him follow in his footsteps.

As for Zane, Dr. Julien was at his prime at the time & was commissioned to build an automaton with an element the brigade didn't have which is ice. Dr. Julien had no qualms building what is essentially a war machine at first but as his creation was nearing completion, he began to have second thoughts. He didn't want to create something that could only destroy and cause more conflict and he began to see the nindroid as another living being. It wouldn't be fair for him to merely serve and not truly live. Shortly before the end of the Warring Era, Zane's body is complete but Dr. Julien slips away from society and many years pass before Zane comes to life and Dr. Julien raises him as his own son.

And finally, the ending.

The ninja reveal themselves and while Lloyd's social life has certainly improved, there are others who still hate him but now, he's willing to stand up for himself & not wallow in self-pity. Karloff gains full custody of Iris, Jay/Nya & Kai/Aria are official couples, Lou and Cole start to take the first steps in reconciliation, and Heather & Luna encourage Zane & Cole to pursue a real relationship together. Dr. Julien is happy for Zane as soon as he finds out while Lou is shocked at first but he learns to let Cole be who he is and eventually accepts their relationship.

And that's it.

Apparently, I bit off much more than I could chew. Even with all these plans, I just can't go through with them. As I said, I've been clinging to the past & I must move on. I'm not leaving the fandom for good. but I am gonna take a hiatus for the sake of my own mentality. One day, I will come back to the fandom but not on this site. It's time for me to start anew.

To everyone who's been with me since the beginning, thank you so much & I'm so sorry for being so whiny & ungrateful. All your kind words & advice really helped me when I was down & inspired me to create many things to contribute to the fandom but those times are over. I still feel I've really let you all down. It was a really difficult decision to make but I know what I must do but one thing is for certain. I will never forget my time here & all the memories I've made for myself and everyone.

Now, it's time for me to go.

I'm sorry.

Thank you.

Goodbye.


End file.
